Al-Sisi ratifies new Investment Law’s amendments

The official Gazette reported on Tuesday that President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has ratified new amendments to the Investment Law No. 72 for 2017, according to a statement by the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation.

The amendments include adding a new paragraph to the article No. 12 that allows the already investing companies in Egypt to benefit from the incentives that were mentioned in articles No. 11 and 13 when the companies expand and increase the production capacity.

Conditions of providing those incentives will be defined by the cabinet, the statement clarified, mentioning that the amendments also added a paragraph to article No. 48 of the law, stipulating that “signing of the partners or their deputies on contracts should be approved by the government while the companies should pay approval fees.”

Egyptian Parliament approved the amendments on 7 July, where the parliament speaker Ali Abdel Aal said those amendments are crucial to attract more foreign direct investments (FDIs) to Egypt.

The amendments also added a new item to article No. 74 that requires governmental and private bodies to provide all the necessary data and information for investors to calculate FDIs and indirect foreign investments in accordance with international standards, noting that the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) will conduct surveys according to international standards to calculate Egypt’s FDIs accurately.

Earlier in July, Minister on Investment and International Cooperation, Sahar Nasr, said that her ministry along with GAFI will continue working on enhancing the regulatory framework of investment in line with the international standards, noting that her ministry coordinates with other governmental agencies in order to eliminate any obstacles that investors may face in Egypt.